For more than 30 years, Best Lawyers® has identified the leading attorneys and law firms in the United States and 70 countries worldwide. The methodology behind Best Lawyers’ selection is based upon an extensive peer-review process and Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers "the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice."

“We are so pleased that our peers recognized the work our attorneys do every day and the expertise they provide to their clients,” said Sam J. McAllester, vice chairman and member of Bone McAllester Norton. “Our entire firm is proud of each of the attorneys selected for the 2016 edition of Best Lawyers in America.”

The Bonelaw attorneys listed in The Best Lawyers in America 2016 list are:

Trace Blankenshipfor the areas of Banking and Finance Law; Mergers and Acquisitions Law; and Non-Profit/Charities Law

The Best Lawyers in America list for 2016 includes attorneys covering all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and inclusion in this year’s publication is based on more than 4.3 million detailed, confidential evaluations of lawyers by other lawyers. Lawyers are not required or allowed to pay a fee to be listed; therefore inclusion in Best Lawyers is considered a singular honor. Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence. Corporate Counsel magazine has called Best Lawyers “the most respected referral list of attorneys in practice.”

For more information on Bone McAllester Norton and its attorneys, visit http://bonelaw.com.

ABOUT BONE MCALLESTER NORTON PLLC

Bone McAllester Norton PLLC is a full-service law firm with 38 attorneys and offices in Nashville, Sumner and Williamson counties, Tennessee. Our attorneys focus on 18 distinct practice areas, providing the wide range of legal services ordinarily required by established and growing businesses and entrepreneurs. Among our practices, we represent clients in business and capital formation, mergers and acquisitions, securities matters, commercial lending and creditors’ rights, commercial real estate and development, governmental regulatory matters, commercial litigation and dispute resolution, intellectual property strategy and enforcement, entertainment and environmental matters. Our client base reflects the firm’s deep understanding and coverage of today’s leading industry and business segments. For more information, visit www.bonelaw.com.

Social media is a fact of modern life. Billions of people across the globe use a variety of platforms such a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat to connect with family, friends and the world at large. Businesses have moved rapidly to capitalize on opportunities for growth in social media, but have also recognized the realities of social media in the everyday lives of their employees.

Recent studies indicate that most employers in the United States now have some form of social media policy and that employers are relaxing policies restricting social media use during business hours.

Even though attitudes are changing on social media in the workplace, employers still face burning questions in developing best practices related to social media.

1. What privacy rights do employees have in their social media use and content?

Access to social media is now linked to the traditional rights of privacy recognized in the Constitution, and state and federal laws are being created (an interpreted) to protect employees' privacy interests in the social media content.

Several states, including Tennessee, have passed laws making it illegal for employers to demand access to employees' social media passwords and "private" social media pages.

2. What interests, if any, does the employer have in monitoring or "policing" employee use?

Despite the increased privacy protections for social media, employers still have legitimate interests in monitoring social media content. Social media laws still recognize an employer's right to monitor social media activity created with employer property (phones, laptops, servers, etc.) and social media content that is tied to their "brand."

Employers also have a legitimate right to review social media content that perpetuates unlawful harassment or discrimination in the workplace.

3. How far can the employer go to regulate employees' social media conduct?

A series of recent decisions from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) hold that, under certain circumstances, social media content may qualify as "protected activity" under the National Labor Relations Act.

Those NLRB decisions have shed more light on the limits on employers when creating social media policies and how employers respond to social media activity by their workers.

4. What are the best social media practices in a changing digital and legal landscape?

The law of social media changes as rapidly as the nature of social media itself. In 2015, employers are best advised to create policies that properly balance their workers' rights to privacy and protected workplace activity against the employers' interests in protecting their brands, ensuring productivity, and addressing unlawful conduct in the workplace.

Employers should seek out qualified legal counsel when reviewing and creating social media policies and practices.

William J. (Paz) Haynes III , an employment lawyer at Bone McAllester Norton, will deliver a presentation on “Privacy and Social Media in the Workplace” at the upcoming Fundamentals of Employment Law Seminar, presented by Sterling Education Services, Inc. The seminar is intended to provide the framework around the basic fundamentals in employment law that companies of all sizes need to know in order to be successful, and attendees will learn how to advise clients, write policies and administer procedures effectively.

Specific topics that will be covered include Hiring and Terminating Employees in the Current Economy, Immigration Law, FLSA/Wage and Hour Critical Issues, ADA and FMLA Updates and Interplay and Privacy and Social Media in the Workplace, among others.

Paz practices in the firm’s Labor & Employment Law group. He has spoken at seminars on employment law and professional ethics for the Tennessee Bar Association, trial practices, youth groups and other civic and professional organizations.

Fundamentals of Employment Law Seminar will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 11. Click here for more information.

Bone McAllester Norton PLLC is a full-service law firm with 38 attorneys and offices in Nashville, Sumner and Williamson counties, Tennessee. Our attorneys focus on 18 distinct practice areas, providing the wide range of legal services ordinarily required by established and growing businesses and entrepreneurs. Among our practices, we represent clients in business and capital formation, mergers and acquisitions, securities matters, commercial lending and creditors’ rights, commercial real estate and development, governmental regulatory matters, commercial litigation and dispute resolution, intellectual property strategy and enforcement, entertainment and environmental matters. Our client base reflects the firm’s deep understanding and coverage of today’s leading industry and business segments. For more information, visit www.bonelaw.com.

Bone McAllester Norton attorney William J. (Paz) Haynes III is slated to deliver a course about contractual agreements to the Office of Minority and Women Business Assistance (BAO), part of Metropolitan Nashville Davidson County Government, at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, May 22, 2013. This course will provide suppliers with a basic understanding of contractual agreements and will assist small, minority and women-owned business owners the importance of what items to look for and include when negotiating contracts with prospective clients.

Paz concentrates his practice in the areas of labor law, litigation and dispute resolution. In the course of his practice, Paz has represented manufacturers, insurers, lending institutions, small businesses and individuals in a variety of matters.

The course will be held at the Howard Office Building on 2nd Avenue North in Nashville. For more, click here.

Bone McAllester Norton PLLC is a full-service law firm with 33 attorneys and offices in Nashville and Sumner County, Tennessee. Our attorneys focus on 16 distinct practice areas, providing the wide range of legal services ordinarily required by established and growing businesses and entrepreneurs. Among our practices, we represent clients in business and capital formation, mergers and acquisitions, securities matters, commercial lending and creditors’ rights, commercial real estate and development, governmental regulatory matters, commercial litigation and dispute resolution, intellectual property strategy and enforcement, entertainment and environmental matters. Our client base reflects the firm’s deep understanding and coverage of today’s leading industry and business segments. For more information, visit www.bonelaw.com.

On Monday, January 16, 2012, Bone McAllester Norton hosted its 11th Annual Fellowship Breakfast to celebrate the memory and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We are honored that more than 525 individuals chose to spend their morning with us at the Hutton Hotel. Our featured speaker was Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette, an ordained minister, longtime civil rights activist, organizer, and an authority on nonviolent social change.

We are especially proud of attorney Paz Haynes, who recited an original poem, "Drum Major."

To commemorate Law Day in 2010, the Nashville Bar Association (NBA) produced a program commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Nashville Student Movement's lunch counter Sit-Ins.

These Sit-Ins were a seminal event in the advancement of the Nashville community, and the civil rights movement nationwide. The NBA's presentation honored the "Counsel for the Children" -- the local lawyers who defended the student demonstrators during the Sit-Ins -- with a mock trial involving several distinguished members of the Nashville bench and bar.

Paz Haynes was one of the producers of the program, and served as moderator for a panel discussion after the mock trial. Two of the "Counsel for the Children," retired Tennessee Supreme Court justice Adolpho A. Birch and trial lawyer George E. ("Citizen") Barrett, shared their experiences and reflections on the Sit-Ins, the trials, and the lawyers and judges involved in these historic events. The event was filmed to be shared and enjoyed by generations of lawyers. The "Counsel for the Children" program recently received national acclaim when the NBA received a 2010 Law Day Outstanding Activity Award from the American Bar Association.

Bone McAllester Norton was a sponsor of the "Counsel for the Children" program. "I was honored to participate in such a memorable and important program for the Nashville Bar,” said Paz. “Through its sponsorship of 'Counsel for the Children', our Firm has ensured that the program will be preserved and appreciated for years to come."

Presented by the Nashville Bar Association, Napier-Looby Bar Association and Nashville Bar Foundation, Law Day 2010 will be a special celebration of the attorneys who defended Nashville sit-in demonstrators on the 50th anniversary of the trials.

Email Disclosure

Although we are always interested in hearing from visitors to our website, communications with Bone McAllester Norton (BMN) by e-mail or through this website do not create an attorney-client relationship with our firm. Under no circumstances should you send confidential information to any person at BMN without first speaking to a firm attorney about establishing an attorney-client relationship. Unsolicited e-mails and information sent to anyone at BMN will not be considered confidential, may be disclosed to others, and may not receive a response. Unless you are already a client, we may not be able to treat information you provide in an e-mail as privileged, confidential or protected, and we may be able to represent a party adverse to you. Additionally, communication with BMN by e-mail over the internet may not be secure. By sending this e-mail, you confirm that you have read and understand this notice.